HEROIC goalkeeping from Losana Kala took the visiting New Zealand (NZ) Masters women's hockey side by surprise.
The Levuka lass was the heroine despite the local side going down lost 0-2.
Fiji team captain Alison Southey heaped praise on Kala for her efforts.
"She (Kala) performed way better than we thought she would," Southey said.
"And her numerous saves led us to name her the player of the match for today (yesterday)," she said.
The NZ Masters side was using the match to build-up for their three-match series against the national high performance side later this week.
Goals in each half to Kelly Rowlingson and Jan McDonald gave the Kiwis the win.
Team captain Paula Enoka said they came into the match expecting a competitive side and said Fiji played above expectations.
The former Black Stick said Fiji were worthy opponents and made her team work hard to get the win.
"They were much stronger, physical and really good competition than what we expected," Enoka said after the match.
"They were fast and showed good skills and they helped us identify our weaknesses," she said.
She said the team would work on their mistakes today and prepare for the first match against the High Performance side.
"We really need to make more use of our opportunities and advantages when in the goal scoring zone," Enoka said.